The art world paid tribute to David Hockney today after his death at the age of 88. Hockney, one of the UK’s most important and influential artists, passed away peacefully at his home yesterday. Following the announcement, an outpouring of grief came from friends and fans. However, the BBC has been criticized for a major mistake while reporting the artist’s death.
BBC’s Embarrassing Error
During the 1 pm news bulletin, a graphic on screen read ‘David Hockney resigns’. The mistake was immediately noticed by viewers, who questioned how the news organization allowed such a silly error to air. One user wrote on X: ‘Errrrr @BBCNews’ alongside a screenshot of the graphic.
‘The BBC seemed confused at lunchtime,’ wrote @trashingdays. ‘They put up a caption “David Hockney Resigns”.’ Another user, @Elms_1905, added: ‘Well done the #bbc apparently David Hockney has resigned from life, otherwise known as died. Who is in charge of this?’
Viewer Reactions
@Beverle48452933 was the most critical, writing: ‘I hope they apologise to his family. Why is the @BBCBreaking @BBC so useless??’ @Toddyspace had a theory for the mistake, suggesting it might be due to recent government resignations: ‘There must be some embarrassment at BBC 1 news this afternoon. BBC headline caption said ‘David Hockney resigns’…resigns from life that is…the iconic artist has died at the age of 88. Perhaps their error was down to so many government resignations these past few weeks.’
Metro has approached the BBC for comment. The broadcaster has yet to respond publicly.
